He was married five times, had a drug and alcohol habit which would have killed many men - and a worrying fondness for firearms.

So it's no surprise the final days of Hollywood wildman Dennis Hopper, who died on Saturday aged 74, should have played out like some bizarre soap opera.

As he lay dying from prostate cancer, Hopper filed for divorce from estranged fifth wife Victoria Duffy to stop her getting a share of his fortune. She in turn barricaded herself in their home. The divorce was not finalised before he died - so their lawyers are likely to be fighting for some time over his estate.

But Dennis Hopper was never going to go quietly.

For decades he lived a life of such excess that even Hollywood. was shocked.

At one stage he was drinking half a gallon of rum and 30 beers a day. He admitted the only way he could function on all that booze was by hoovering up three grams of cocaine daily.

He once said: "You mix drinks, do a little bit of coke and level off to maintain appearances. You can come across as a sober person.

"But I would not have hired myself at times. I am amazed anyone did"Not surprisingly, his drug and drink intake made him a less than perfect husband.

He was married to Michelle Philips from the Mamas and the Papas for just eight days in 1970. The marriage ended amid allegations that he had abused his bride and had made "unnatural sexual demands."

Hopper recently said of his strange relationships: "I have four wonderful children, all from different mothers.

"I've been married five times. Each time, I was marrying for life. I am the first one to ever get divorced in my family. I've more than made up for it, haven't I?" It was fitting that Hopper was born in the outlaw town of Dodge City, Kansas. After moving to California, his screen break came in a 1955 soap opera.

But it was two roles alongside James Dean, in Rebel Without a Cause and Giant, which made him a star. Then in 1969 he directed and starred in the low budget Easy Rider - an LSDinfluenced tale of the hostility faced by two drug-addled hippies as they try to ride their motorbikes across America. The movie was unexpectedly a hit, making $50million. Hopper was handed a massive budget for his next film The Last Movie.

But it was a disaster and Hopper was not allowed to direct another movie for a decade.

Instead he carved out a reputation for playing sometimes disturbing cameo roles in films such as Blue Velvet, Apocalypse Now and Speed. He was twice nominated for an Oscar.

In the mid-1980s he was forced into rehab when he was imprisoned in Mexico after being found wandering naked in the jungle.

He was then in kept in hospital for months in LA after he tried to clamber on to the wing of a moving plane. Finally he kicked drugs and booze, replacing them with black tea - and golf.

He said recently: "In my mind, I was an artist and writer. The reality was that I was just a drunk and a drug addict.

"It wasn't helping me create. In fact, it hindered me. It stopped me from getting jobs. I dealt with the rejection by taking more drink and drugs." Friends paid tribute to Hopper.

Playboy boss Hugh Hefner called him "a very cool cat. Easy Rider co-star Peter Fonda said: "He changed the way movies were made in Hollywood. I was blessed by his passion and friendship."